Back in April of 2003, a few iterations of this site ago, I wrote my first short story in something like nine years. I was working on some crappy novel at the time, and I needed to take a break. Since then, I've written more. I've always seen them as exercises, practice. That's not to say garbage, just practice for the big game. After finishing Bear Season, I noticed I was nearing a good, round number--a hundred, to be precise--and I decided I'd put together a book of short stories when I got there. A hundred's a nice place, I figured, plenty for there to be a few decent pieces.

I have six to go, and I'm working on most of them at the same time. A few are fairly old, unfinished projects--two years, in one case--and a few are based on the ideas of friends from recent conversations.

When I've hit the mark, I'll be taking the site down for redesign and new focus. When it comes back, I'll no longer be posting new stories. I've given thought to my career, in recent times, considered the advice of friends, and, given the length of time and loss of readers, as well as the unfortunate nature of First Serial Rights, I think the time has come to start submitting work to publications--reserve rights, all of that bullshit.

This will affect the handful of you who happen to be reading this entry. It's a small number, but it means something to me that you've continued to read over the course of time. So, thank you. There are six more to go. Here's hoping they don't disappoint. Furthermore, maybe we can find something on the other side of all of this to talk about. Also, there'll be a book over there to memorialize these last five years of my on-again, off-again romance with short work, one of those self-published numbers from the good-old days.

Timestamp: 03.26.08 at 05:29 PM. Filed under: Meta, Striving.